Do something different with your PC, smartphone, laptop and desktop

If you're fed up with Windows, Linux, or macOS, you'll want to know if there's a great alternative desktop operating system that's worth using.

While there are no absolute definitive answers here – everyone's use case is different, after all – we've discovered ten distinct examples that fall outside the usual bounds.

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Our list even includes a few true outsiders, independent operating systems built from the ground up which serve mainly to prove just how difficult it is to create an entire functioning OS without a large number of brains working on it.

Everything here can be tested reasonably within a virtual machine, so if something grabs your interest don't hesitate to download and give it a try.

ArcaOS is an operating system based on the last IBM release for OS/2. While OS/2 barely survives as a legacy system, even after being extended for a while as eComStation, ArcaOS is still being actively developed with Spanish and German language editions expected to be released in the next update.

ArcaOS includes a robust Unix compatibility subsystem, featuring a variety of ported OSS Linux apps and some drivers, but still features the OS/2 Workplace Shell.

ArcaOS is a 32-bit OS that runs on the x86 processor architecture, so should be compatible with some particularly old PCs. Though it's native file system is JFS, it can still work with FAT12, FAT16, or FAT32 formating.

There are two editions available: Personal, which retails for $129 per license, and Commercial, which retails at $229 per license though volume discounts are available. The personal edition includes 6-months support and maintenance, while the commercial edition includes one-year of priority support and maintenance.